states of pennsylvania and new york, but also states like mississippi, south carolina, west virginia, wyoming, iowa, all of which use this mid deem charge rather than felony. and what we find in these 13 other states is that there are higher rates of drug treatment participation, lower rates of drug use, and even slightly lower rates of violent and property crime. so again, we can prove we can have safer communities. and then of course there are the unintended consequences of a felony conviction. consequences that really can cause great damage to a young life for many decades out. the very three things that can keep someone successfully in his or her recovery, access to housing, education and employment are put farther out of reach because of a felony conviction, especially in a down economy, someone with a felony has great difficulty even accessing 5 a job that pays minimum wage. putting these felony convictions to a whole population of young people, we really perpetuate a chronic underclass which benefits none of us. and then of course there's the inequity in the criminal justice system. ev